Supercharged Love(22)

Our kissing slows until I nip at her lower lip. With a final brush against hers, I pull back. When her eyelids flutter open, they take a while to focus. The look in them gives me hope. She wants this almost as much as I do. All this time and money spent on my GTO might just pay off. My hand cups her jaw and I press a kiss to her forehead and let my lips linger there. I pull back and look down at her, at the flush of her cheeks, the redness of her lips where I’ve kissed her. Fuck, she’s beautiful.

Lifting a hand, she presses it to my chest, resting over my thumping heart.

“It ain’t going to happen, Max.” She sounds almost regretful as she reaches into my chest and wrings my heart between her two hands.

“But … you want this.” I stammer, confused as hell at the direction this is going. Seconds ago, we were kissing, and if I’m not mistaken, she was enjoying it. More than enjoying it.

“I’ve seen you in action. You’re not really interested in me.” A sad smile appears on her lips fleetingly before it vanishes and her expression becomes blank.

“I am.”

“You just think you are because I don’t fall for all your bullshit and I know my way around an engine.” There is no trace of humor or teasing in her tone; she really believes what’s she’s saying.

“That’s crap. You want this too.” My voice rises.

“Not enough that I’m willing to get my heart broken.” She squeezes out from between my body and the GTO. My arms feel empty already. The distance between us has broken whatever spell was binding us together, and before I can take her in my arms again, she moves around the garage, turning off the lights and unplugging the radio. After helping her with the metal shutter, I’m left with no choice but to leave.

“Thanks,” she mutters as she locks up and heads in the direction of her Charger. “See you later.”

“See you,” I reply but sit in the truck for a long time after she’s left.





Chapter Eleven




I stay away from Hank’s Auto Shop the following week, licking my wounds. I try to work out what my next move should be, but I am shit out of ideas. I thought I was good at hiding my bad mood, but Meghan picks up on it the minute I walk into the diner. She watches me closely as I pick a table in the back corner instead of at the counter where I usually sit with Causey. I want to be on my own, and if I’m at the counter, people will speak to me.

“What’s up with you?” she asks, raising an eyebrow as she stands with her pad, poised to take my order.

“Nothing,” I grumble and slouch down in my seat, stretching my long legs out under the table.

“Bullshit, little brother. Tell me what’s wrong.”

I must be desperate to talk to someone about it because I blurt out, “It’s her.”

“The girl you like?”

I glare at her, and she flashes me a snarky smile. “Yeah.”

“Which one is she?” Meghan slides into the seat opposite me and folds her arms on the table, looking very interested.

I roll my eyes at her; there is only one. “I told you. Leigh Storm.”

“The tall brunette whose Dad owns the auto shop.”

“Yeah, that’s her.” I perk up at Meghan’s description.

“Typical Max,” she says laughingly.

“What?” My eyes flash when I look up at her, daring her to say anything about Leigh.

“Anything to do with cars.”

“That’s not why I like her.”

Meghan smiles and shakes her head. “Yeah, I know why you like her. She’s gorgeous, has long legs, and probably knows as much about cars as you do.”

“More,” I add in a sullen voice. Meghan holds her hands wide in a need-I-say-more gesture.

“So what’s the problem?”

“She keeps turning me down,” I grumble

“Why?”

I shrug, unsure myself. “Thinks she’ll get hurt.”

“And will she?”

“Not if I can help it.”

“You can only try to get her to trust you.” She reaches for my hand, and begrudgingly, I let her take it. “Although it would help if there weren't any other girls on the scene.”

“Yeah, I know.” She’s right about them; no wonder Leigh Storm thinks I’m a dick.

“I don’t know why you bother with them. It’s not like you stay with them, and you come home every night on your own.” I’m not about to tell Meghan the real reason, which is they are just for show. I’m expected to have a girl with me, and ever since that first night when I let Leigh down, I’ve never asked her to ride with me again. Hell, I can’t even manage to get her to come and watch me, but I don’t want to hear those words come out of her mouth when she turns me down. To crush what little hope I have left that I can win her over. Instead, I pick a girl at random, any girl. Never the same girl twice because I don’t want them to get the wrong idea.